Hat trick of Lifetime Achiever Awards for KZN's Caroline Smart

12 Dec 2012

Caroline Smart, editor of online magazine artSMart, has received three Lifetime Achievement Awards in as many months. In September, the Ethekwini 2012 Living Legend Award for Arts and Culture. In November, The Indian Academy of South Africa presented her with a Golden Peacock Award for Achievement.

Later that month, she received an award from Tape Aids for the Blind for her 43 years of work as a volunteer reader. The studio in which she regularly records will be named after her.

"I am simply bursting with pride and I feel very humbled by this recognition," said Smart. "Each award is very beautiful in its own individual way and they are placed at different spots around the house so they are continually in my eye line. The Living Legends award overlooks my collection of orchids on the dining room table. The Golden Peacock and the garland that went with it are on the carved wooden chest in the lounge area. The Tape Aids award sits neatly on the shelf next to my computer!"

Many hats

Caroline Smart wears many hats: actress, director, scriptwriter, arts journalist and dance and theatre judge. She is a former television producer for SABC arts programmes and was editor/producer of D'Arts, the now-defunct magazine of the Durban Arts Association. The walls of her home office are covered with awards and certificates relating her prowess in all these fields.

"2012 has been a fantastic year," Smart said. "I've been back in theatre working on two productions I have written and it's been very fulfilling, because this is what I have been trained to do."

One of these productions, iNkanyezi - The Star, is currently running in The Playhouse Loft until 15 December. iNkanyezi - The Star is a Stable Theatre production presented in association with The Playhouse Company. Performances this week are Wednesday to Friday at 7.30pm and Saturday at 3pm (Saturday evening show TBC). Tickets R65 booked through Computicket.